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Prayer, and Its Answer

Preached at Zoar Chapel, London,
on July 26, 1846, by J. C. Philpot

"Call unto me, and I will answer you; and show you great and mighty things, which you know not." Jeremiah 33:3

These words were spoken by the Lord unto the prophet Jeremiah under peculiar circumstances. We read in the first verse of this chapter, "Moreover the word of the Lord came unto Jeremiah the second time, while he was yet confined in the court of the prison." Jeremiah, at this time, then was a prisoner. But what brought him into prison? The real cause of his imprisonment was his faithfulness; as we find in the preceding chapter. "Jeremiah the prophet was confined in the court of the prison, which was in the King of Judah's house. For Zedekiah king of Judah had confined him, saying, Why do you prophesy, and say, Thus says the Lord, Behold I will give this city into the hand of the king of Babylon, and he shall take it." (32:2, 3.) Jeremiah's faithfulness, in the exercise of his prophetic office, was then the real, substantial cause of his imprisonment. But it would not do to assign this as the real cause; they must needs therefore lay hold of a pretext; and this pretext was, that Jeremiah was a traitor to Judah and Jerusalem. For when the army of the King of Egypt came up to deliver Jerusalem from Nebuchadnezzar, Jeremiah, going out of the city, was apprehended in the gate of Benjamin, and imprisoned as intending to desert to the Chaldeans. (Jeremiah 37:11-15.)

But what were the circumstances of the city itself? Jerusalem at this time was besieged by Nebuchadnezzar. For nearly a year had that mighty conqueror hemmed her in; the sword was made bare against her bosom; famine and pestilence were walking in her streets; and God was about to bring down upon her those judgments which he had so long denounced. It was a time of general mourning; a period of universal sorrow. Deeply was the heart of the prophet bowed within him; not merely by his own personal calamities, of which he had so very large a share, but also by the dark cloud of destruction which he saw was about to burst forth upon the city of Zion.

It was, then, under this trying state, and amid these perplexing circumstances that the Lord spoke these words to Jeremiah—"Call unto me, and I will answer you; and show you great and mighty things, which you know not."

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Two things strike my mind as particularly worthy of notice in the text.
I. The invitation—"Call unto me."
II. The promise connected with the invitation—"And I will answer you, and show you great and mighty things, which you know not."

I. The INVITATION—"Call unto me." It seems to me, that the condition of Judah and Jerusalem at this time is emblematic of the state of God's people before the Lord stretches forth his right arm to deliver them. If you read this chapter attentively, you will find it contains a whole cluster of the richest blessings for God's people. "Behold, I will bring it health and cure, and I will cure them, and will reveal unto them the abundance of peace and truth; and I will cause the captivity of Israel to return, and will build them as at the first. And I will cleanse them from all their iniquity whereby they have sinned against me; and I will pardon all their iniquities whereby they have transgressed against me." (verses 6-8.)

What, then, was the season, and what the opportunity, that the Lord took to give these blessed and unconditional promises? When Judah and Jerusalem were sunk to the very lowest point; when there was no hope, nor help; when Nebuchadnezzar was about to burn the city with fire, and to drag into a miserable captivity those of her children who would escape the sword. At that very gloomy time, at that very hopeless season, God revealed these promises, which he fulfilled in a measure when he restored Judah from the Babylonish captivity; and which, I believe, he will one day more fully accomplish, when he sets his hand the second time to bring back his own for a time cast-off Israel.

Judah's sunken condition seems, then, emblematic of that of the Lord's people before there is any real deliverance. They have to sink down into similar spots of helplessness and hopelessness, out of which he, and he only can deliver them. And when all that the creature can do is thoroughly exhausted, when the right arm of man's strength is withered, then is the time that the Lord usually appears, and manifests himself as "the God of all grace." Jerusalem must be besieged, and Jeremiah imprisoned, before any promise can come to the one or the other.

But let us, with God's blessing, look a little more closely at the invitation before us; for it is applicable not merely to Jeremiah under his distressed circumstances, but to all the family of God under similar states spiritually. "Call unto me."

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True prayer is the gift of God. It is one of those "good gifts," and those "perfect gifts," which "come down from the Father of light, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning." (James 1:17.) The Lord, therefore, says, "I will pour upon the house of David, and upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the spirit of grace and of supplication." (Zech. 12:10.) And again, "Likewise the Spirit also helps our infirmities; for we know not what we should pray for as we ought; but the Spirit himself makes intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered." (Rom. 8:26.) There is no real, no spiritual, no acceptable prayer to the Lord except that which is created by the operation of God the Spirit upon the heart of a believer. The invitation, therefore, is not addressed to men generally; no more, it is not addressed to the people of God generally; but it is addressed to the people of God under peculiar circumstances. It belongs to them only so far as they are brought into those trying circumstances and perplexing states into which God is pleased to bring them, that he may enable them to cry and sigh unto himself. The gracious invitation, "Call unto me," is made to that prayer only which enters into the ears of the Lord almighty, and brings down in God's own time and way the desired answer.

But it is necessary for several things to be wrought with divine power in the soul before we can spiritually act upon this invitation. The Lord says, "Call unto me." Can I therefore at once call unto him? can I seek his face? can I pray unto him acceptably? I cannot, except he is first pleased himself to work certain things in my soul. What are these things?

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1. The first is, a deep sense of my sinfulness, guilt, and vileness. There is no real prayer to the Lord except the soul is abased, humbled, and laid low. And what abases, humbles, and lays low? Reading about sin, hearing about sin, talking about sin? No—a spiritual sense of our guilt, our shame, our vileness, our pollution, our unworthiness, divinely wrought in the soul, abases, humbles, and lays low at the footstool of mercy. And I am bold to say, no prayer will rise up with acceptance into the ears of the Lord of hosts, except that which springs out of a broken heart and a contrite spirit, made so by the blessed Spirit of God, discovering to us what we are, and thus humbling us, laying us low in our own eyes, and making us to feel guilty and filthy in our own sight.

2. A sense of our ignorance is another gracious qualification before we can call upon the Lord. As long as we think we can teach ourselves, instruct our own minds, and bring into our own hearts, by dint of creature exertion, the truth of God, we shall never pray sincerely, earnestly, and spiritually for divine teaching. But when we are brought to this point, that we know nothing, absolutely nothing, except what God himself is pleased to teach us by the special operation of the Spirit; when we feel so shut up in blindness, darkness, and folly, that nothing short of God's light, nothing short of divine manifestation, can communicate to our souls that which we want to feel and enjoy—then we begin to pray aright. This knowledge, then, of our own ignorance, blindness, and folly is absolutely necessary to make us cry to the Lord with sincerity and earnestness that he himself would be pleased to teach us. If I can teach myself the truth as it is in Jesus; if I can bring into my own heart with sweet and unctuous power the word of God's grace; if I can feed upon it, enjoy it, and sit under the shadow of it by my own exertions, it is but awful mockery in me to pretend to go to the throne of grace to ask the Lord to do it for me. But if, on the other hand, I am oppressed by a sense of my ignorance; if this feeling is deeply wrought in my heart, that I know nothing, absolutely nothing, except so far as the Spirit of God is pleased to unfold the truth to my soul, then I come to the Lord to ask him to teach me, not because I have read in the Scriptures of such a doctrine as divine teaching; nor because I have heard others ask the Lord to teach them; but because I feel utterly unable without this teaching to bring into my soul those heavenly realities which it longs to experience.

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3. A sense of our helplessness, inability, and impotency in divine things is a third qualification before we can truly and spiritually call upon God. How much there is of false prayer in us! How much there is of formality and self-righteousness even in true Christians! How much bowing of the knee without God's hand bowing down the heart! How many words escape from the lips that have never been indited by the Holy Spirit in the soul! But a sense of our helplessness, insufficiency, and inability must be created by the hand of God in our souls before we can sincerely and spiritually ask him to bless us, manifest himself unto us, shine upon our hearts, and lift up upon us the light of his countenance.

4. A glimpse of the things which we desire to experience, is another qualification before we can put in practice this divine invitation. It is not because we read about certain blessings in God's word, that we are enabled to go to a throne of grace, and ask the Lord to confer these blessings upon us. We may do it naturally; but this reading and praying in the letter will not profit; for "the flesh profits nothing." But, on the other hand, when the Lord is pleased to shine upon the sacred Scriptures; to give us glimpses in our hearts of the blessings revealed in them; to show us the promises which are all "yes and amen in Christ Jesus;" and the blessings which are stored up in him for those who fear God—when we enjoy glimpses of these heavenly blessings, then we rightly, sincerely, and earnestly call upon God to bestow them upon us.

5. Faith in the promises; faith in God who gives them; faith in Jesus in whom they are stored; faith in the blessed Spirit through whom they are communicated—this precious faith, God's gift and work, is absolutely indispensable before we can call upon God aright. "Let him," says James, "ask in faith, nothing wavering." (1:6.) "The word preached did not profit them, not being mixed with faith in them that heard it." (Heb. 4:20.) If there be no faith in our prayers they are not acceptable to God; they do not enter his ears; they do not bring down the promised blessing. Therefore, before we can call upon the Lord aright, we must have a living faith raised up in our heart, whereby we believe that God hears us, and that he will in his own time and way communicate his blessings to us. It is thus that we find access through the Mediator into God's presence, and plead with him for those blessings which he has to bestow.

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6. Hungering, thirsting, panting, longing, and languishing after those blessings which God has to grant, is another qualification before we can call upon him to bestow them upon us. Is it not mockery, awful mockery, to go to the Lord in prayer, and to ask him to give us this, and to give us that; to bestow this mercy, to enrich our souls with that blessing; to apply this and that promise; and all the time have no earnest longings, pantings, thirstings, hungerings, and breathings after them? It is awful mockery to ask God for a blessing, and have no desire in the soul after that blessing; to ask him for food, and have no hunger; to beg of him the water of life, and feel no thirst; to request divine clothing, and to know no nakedness; to implore sweet manifestations of his favor and love, and not desire them above thousands of gold and silver. It is but awful mockery, I repeat it, to go with these pretended petitions, and all the while have no earnest, sincere longings or languishings after the blessings which God has to bestow.

7. The last qualification I shall mention is, patience and perseverance to wait at God's footstool; as we read, "Be followers of those, who, through faith and patience inherit the promises." (Heb. 6:12.) We must resemble the woman, of whom the Lord spoke in the parable, that though the unjust judge feared not God, nor regarded man, yet he was overcome by her importunity; we must be like the man who was in bed with his children, but was brought out of it by the importunity of his friend to give him all that he needed. So must the Lord's people not only seek, cry, and beg, but also wait and persevere until he arise to satisfy their desires.

If, then, these qualifications are absolutely needful; if there is no right calling upon God except this experience has been wrought in the heart by God the Spirit himself, how much true prayer is there in the world? How much true prayer is there in our hearts? And is not this the reason why there are so few answers? why we pray so much, and get so little? why we have so little prevalency with God? why we seek, and so seldom find? knock at the door, and find it so rarely opened? May not this be the reason, that with all our calling upon God, we lack these needful qualifications? They are indeed God's own gifts, God's own work; but still, if we lack these needful qualifications, prayer is but empty breath, and the words of the lip but idle mockery.

But when the Lord himself would give us a blessing; when it is in his heart to bestow a favor, he raises up these divine qualifications in the soul; he puts us spiritually where Jeremiah was naturally—in the prison; shuts us up, lays burdens upon us, makes our chain heavy, brings upon us troubles, trials, temptations, afflictions, sharp distresses, perhaps outward persecutions; in a word, puts us into those spots and states out of which none but he can deliver. When then, in this state, the divine "Author and Finisher of faith," the bounteous Giver of every good and perfect gift, begins to raise up desires and breathings in the soul; prayer at once springs up out of the heart, and enters into the ears of the Lord almighty; and, in God's own time and in God's own way, brings down the blessed answer.

And this leads us to the second branch of the subject.

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II. The PROMISE connected with the invitation—"Call unto me, and I will answer you; and show you great and mighty things which you know not."

Let us cast a glimpse at the state of Jerusalem at that time. It is, as I before observed, emblematic of the state of God's people before he answers their prayers, and reveals to them the abundance of peace and truth. Was not Jerusalem sinking as low as she could possibly fall? Was not the sword of destruction hanging over her head by a single thread? Was not Nebuchadnezzar about to thrust the edge of his slaughter-weapon into her very bosom? It was so. And did she not justly deserve it? Had not her sins and iniquities drawn down divine indignation? Could she plead innocent? Could she justly say, 'I have not sinned! these things have come upon me unmeritedly?'

The carnal and self-righteous might have said so; as we know there were some who uttered that language in her streets, "Yet you say, because I am innocent, surely his anger shall turn from me. Behold, I will plead with you, because you say, I have not sinned." (Jer. 2:35.) But the God-fearing people of the city could not say so. When the Lord said, "Have you not procured this unto yourself?" (Jer. 2:17,) each and all who feared God would answer, 'Yes, yes; we have, we have.' And thus no God-fearing man, who has had a discovery of his own sinfulness, can ever plead innocent. Whatever he suffers, he suffers deservedly; whatever he endures, he has justly merited. This makes him put his mouth in the dust; because he knows that every suffering, yes, hell itself, is his just desert.

In this state, then, when the cloud of destruction was lowering over Jerusalem; when the lightning-flash at times was bursting through the heavens; when the harbingers and precursors of the coming storm were falling thick and fast, and it seemed as though Judah and Jerusalem were about to be swept utterly away—then God reveals the promise, that "he would bring her health and cure; would cause her captivity to return, would cleanse her from all her iniquity, and make her a name of joy, and praise, and an honor before all the nations of the earth." O how wonderful that God should take that very time and that very occasion to lay open the bounty of his loving bosom, and assure her, that his heart was full of love to her! At the very time that his sword, bathed in vengeance, hung over her to destroy, he tells her there was love in his heart towards her; that his covenant should stand forever, and the purposes of his heart be fulfilled.

Is not this emblematic? Is not this strikingly descriptive of the dealings of God with his people? That he smites with one hand, while he blesses with the other; and that while he holds the sword of chastisement over their head, yet his heart is full of love and mercy? He, therefore, says to Jeremiah, '"Call unto me;" I have blessings to bestow; my heart is full of love to Judah and Jerusalem; I have promises to bestow upon her; I will never leave her, nor forsake her; I will forgive her; I will restore her; she shall be a name and praise to all around her; my covenant with her shall stand for evermore. "Call unto me," you have but to ask, you have but to seek, you have but to beg, you have but to implore; I will show her mercy, I will make known my love, I will reveal pardon and peace, I will comfort her, I will bless her and do her good.'

How suitable is this for a child of God in a similar state! And to such a soul, he says, '"Call unto me." You have but to plead, but to beg, but to petition; the blessing is in my bosom—you have but to draw it forth. My heart is full of love; it only waits for you to open your mouth wide, and I will fill it with every good thing. "Call unto me, I will answer you;" not by the sword, not by judgments, not by pestilence, not by famine. "Call unto me, I will answer you; and show you great and mighty things, which you know not."'

But what are these "great and mighty things" which Jeremiah knew not? He could not believe that God had love in his heart towards Jerusalem. But the Lord says, 'Only seek me, only supplicate me; I will show you these great and mighty things.' So he says to his people—'Though you are deeply sunk under a sense of your sinfulness, ignorance, helplessness, yet "Call unto me, I will show you great and mighty things, which you know not."'

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What are some of these "great and mighty things" which they know not?

1. One is, Divine sovereignty—that God "does according to his will in the army of heaven, and among the inhabitants of the earth; and that he will fulfill all his pleasure." The doctrine of God's sovereignty is very easily learned—it may be caught up under one sermon, or by reading half a page of a tract; it may be known in theory in less than half an hour. But have I then learned it? Have I got it aright? Say, I have read an author, Elisha Coles for instance, who writes admirably on God's sovereignty—can I learn it thus? I might walk by the Bank of England, and say, 'What a noble building! what beautiful architecture! its cellars bursting with gold!' But is it all mine because I walk by and look at it? Just as much might I lay hold of divine sovereignty by merely reading a book, or hearing a preacher explain it, as I can lay claim to all the gold in the Bank cellars by walking round it, and admiring it as a beautiful structure.

I must learn divine sovereignty in a very different way from merely reading, hearing, or talking about it. I must know and feel it in my heart by a divine power. And how must I learn it there? For the most part, by having this divine sovereignty cross me at every turn. If I lay plans—to have divine sovereignty overthrowing them; if I wish for something very much—to have divine sovereignty thwarting me in it; if I want to be something—to have divine sovereignty in that very thing pulling me down; no, if I want something really good—to find divine sovereignty bestowing it in a way most painful to my flesh. Thus we learn divine sovereignty where Jeremiah learned it—in the prison-house, amid persecutions, through afflictions, in sharp temptations, and having the corruptions of our heart laid bare. Here we learn God will execute his own purposes, let proud nature kick and rebel, pine and fret her utmost.

When, then, you "Call unto the Lord," he begins to show you a little of divine sovereignty; and not merely shows it you, but brings you to submit to it. That is a very hard thing to be brought to—to submit to God's sovereignty when it is thwarting some desired purpose, some deeply cherished and much longed-for plan, crossing you at every turn, disappointing the wishes of your heart! Can man, proud, rebellious, independent man, submit to God's sovereignty? Yes! he can, when he is brought down by the Spirit of God, laid low, and made to find and feel that God will execute his own purposes, whether man kicks against it or submits. To learn God's sovereignty thus is somewhat different from lying on a sofa on a May morning, and reading Elisha Coles.

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2. The salvation of the soul by the blood and obedience of God's only-begotten Son, is another of these great and mighty things which God reveals in answer to true prayer. Is that point easily settled? the salvation of our souls? our saving interest in the love of the Lamb? our election before all time? our redemption by the precious blood of Jesus? our regeneration by the power of the Spirit? and our certain perseverance unto the heavenly kingdom? Is all this easily learned? If you have learned it so easily, you will have to go to another school. You have got to learn it again, to know it in a different way.

Salvation, as a doctrine, may be learned in a quarter of an hour; salvation, as a blessing, may not be learned in many years. When a vessel of mercy becomes exercised to know whether his name is in the Book of Life; whether the work of the Spirit is begun upon his heart; whether he is one of those for whom the Lamb of God shed his atoning blood; whether he is one of the sons or daughters of the Lord God Almighty; and becomes restless, tried, and exercised upon this point, he will call upon God to make that point clear in his soul. And it will be made manifest in God's own time and way; he will in answer to prayer give clearer or fainter testimonies to the soul's eternal salvation in the blood and righteousness of his dear Son.

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3. The reason of all our trials; the end to be answered by all the providential circumstances through which we pass; the cause of all the afflictions, temptations, and distresses that the soul has had to endure; is another of those great and mighty things which God makes known in answer to true prayer. Can I often see the reason of them? I cannot. And I must say, if you often or usually can, you are favored. There are some who, directly a trial comes, say, 'I know why this trial befalls me;' directly an affliction visits them, 'O , I see the reason of this affliction, and I am sure it will be a blessing to my soul.' If you can feel and speak in this way, you have stronger faith than the majority of God's people.

The usual operation of affliction on the souls of God's people is this—they know not why it has come upon them; they see not what profit it is to produce; they cannot believe any blessing is couched beneath it. As we cannot perceive the sun behind the cloud, so they cannot see the Lord's face when he hides himself behind a cloud of afflictions and sorrows. But the Lord says to his afflicted people, "Call unto me; seek my face; lay your petition at my footstool; press earnestly forward with your request. I will show you great and mighty things which you know not. You know not what this trial is for; you know not what is the benefit of these temptations you are laboring under; you know not what this affliction is to produce; you know not what this reverse in circumstances is to bring about. You are therefore tried, perplexed, exercised. But do not go to man; do not look to the creature; seek not to unravel it yourself—call unto me—I will show you great and mighty things, which you know not. I will show you what this trial is for, what this temptation is to do—to humble you; this trouble is to wean you from the world, this affliction to break some snare, this exercise to meeken and soften your heart, and bring you to the footstool of mercy. You shall see that there is a blessing lodged beneath this trial and couched in this affliction, which you will have reason to bless God for to the latest day of your existence."

And I believe (it is not part of my 'theory', but, through mercy, part of my 'experience',) that our greatest blessings spring out of our greatest trials; and that those clouds which seem most dark, so dark that we think we never shall see a ray of light upon them, in God's own time and way disperse; light bursts through them—and we bless God for the very trial, however heavy it may have been at the time, however much we may have despaired of seeing it made a blessing to our souls.

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4. That all things work together for good to our souls; that whatever we pass through in providence or in grace, is for our spiritual profit—is another thing that God will show us when we rightly call upon his name. He says, "Call unto  me." 'Do not go to the creature—that is but a broken reed; do not trust to an arm of flesh—that will fail you when you need it most; come to me, to my bosom—pour out your petition in my ear; seek my face; lay your needs at my footstool. "Call unto me, I will answer you, and show you great and mighty things, which you know not."'

To believe that all our trials, temptations, and afflictions are working together for our spiritual good—is a great, a mighty thing, which often we know not. 'How can that be for my good, and how can this be for my good?' Is not our mind often thus perplexed? But the Lord says, "Call unto me, I will answer you, and show you great and mighty things, which you know not;" among them, that "all things are working together for good;" and that spiritual profit will be answered by all and each.

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5. The super-aboundings of God's grace over the aboundings of our sin, is another great and mighty thing that God will show and make known to those who call upon him. What a blessed truth is this—the super-aboundings of grace over the aboundings of sin! yet how painfully learned. How the soul must grapple hard with sin and temptation! What workings up of the depth of our fallen nature before we can know anything of the super-aboundings of grace over it! But the Lord says, "Call unto me, I will answer you; and show you great and mighty things, which you know not"—and among them, the super-aboundings of my mercy and grace over the aboundings of your iniquity. Have iniquity and sin abounded in us? Have we felt and known it, and been so filled with it, as to have sunk very low at times with a sight and sense of what we have thought, said, or done? Have our backslidings, our vain thoughts, our inward adulteries and idolatries, and the workings of our fallen nature, sometimes made us sink very low, and to feel that sin has indeed abounded in us? "Call unto me, I will answer you; and show you great and mighty things, which you know not." Among them shall be the super-aboundings of my grace over the aboundings of your sin; that though "sin has reigned unto death, grace shall reign through righteousness unto everlasting life;" that God takes occasion by the very sins of his people to manifest more of his mercy in forgiving them, his love in covering them, and his grace in superabounding over them.

Are not these rich blessings? Time will not suffice to enumerate more, such as—
the pardon of sin,
the sweet enjoyment of God's favor,
testimonies of his eternal love,
smiles of his loving countenance,
the witness of the blessed Spirit,
the leadings, guidings, and teachings of that divine Comforter.

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These are the "great and mighty things" that God's people are longing from time to time to experience. And is not the Lord from time to time drawing us to his bosom? and raising up sighs and cries in the soul? When the Lord has raised up these inward desires, he answers them, and begins to show the "great and mighty things" which we know not, and to reveal the abundance of peace and truth.

If you have gathered my meaning (however feebly and faintly expressed,) from what I have endeavored to speak this morning, you will have observed, that there are two leading features in every gracious man's experience—
1. a sense of his own sinfulness, ignorance, and helplessness;
2. a longing and languishing after those blessings which God has to bestow.

And these the Lord from time to time opens up to his soul, revealing to his heart, and discovering by the teaching and operations of his blessed Spirit those blessings, favors, and mercies, that he is longing to enjoy. And I believe, if you will look at your experience under the teachings and leadings of God in your soul, you will know something of this. You will find, that your experience may be summed up in these two features. Sometimes you have sunk very low, have been tried in your mind, harassed in your soul, deeply perplexed, everything making against you and little for you. But the Lord from time to time has raised up desires, sighs, cries, and groans in your heart, draws you to his footstool of mercy, and there enables you to tell him all that you are, and all that you need. And then, there are times and seasons when the Lord graciously and mercifully opens his hand, gives you a testimony, bestows upon you a word, a visit, a whisper, a smile, softens your heart, melts your soul, raises up some evidence, and blesses you more or less with that blessing which makes rich, and adds no sorrow with it.

Do you expect to have any other experience all your life long? Do you expect to find 'the dream of your early youth' ever realized—to be better and better, holier and holier, wiser and wiser, stronger and stronger; every day that you live? I never expect to find the fond dream of my early religious youth thus fulfilled. But I believe, so far as God is our teacher, this will be, more or less, our daily experience, so long as we are tenants in this fallen world—a growing sense of our sinfulness, ignorance, helplessness, nothingness, inability, and impotency. At times (for the Lord only at times makes us to feel our complete dependence upon him) we shall cry, sigh, and groan, breathe out our heart, wrestle with the Divine Majesty, and supplicate at his footstool. And then, there will sometimes come a word, a promise, a testimony, a token, a smile, a whisper, a melting, a softening, a breaking down, an encouragement; and this produces a going forward in the strength of the Lord. It is thus, and thus only, that we shall live to praise his name, and crown Jesus Lord of all.

Is not this the way which is most glorifying to God, though so humbling to man? And must not this be a right way? Shall you and I be such sacrilegious wretches, as under the cover of religion to creep into the very sanctuary, and snatch the Redeemer's crown off his head? But to be nothing but what God makes us, know nothing but what God teaches, feel nothing but what God inspires, enjoy nothing but what God communicates—this is to bless him for everything which he freely imparts. And therefore, in order to keep a sinner at the footstool of mercy all his days; to hide pride from man, and abase him in his own eyes; to break to pieces all his wisdom, strength, and righteousness, God keeps his people ever poor and needy, ever crying, sighing and begging for what he has to bestow.

And when he gives it, it is in a gracious, in a sweetly manifestative way, that the creature shall know from whom it comes, and not be able to take to itself an atom of glory. And thus, by these gracious dealings upon the hearts of his people, contrary to flesh and blood, contrary to our fond dream of early days, contrary to all the arguments and reasonings of our reasoning mind, and to the creed of all the world, religious or profane, the Lord carries on his own work in his own way.

And thus, when a man is sufficiently humbled to be raised; sufficiently brought down to be made to stand; sufficiently stripped to be clothed; and sufficiently emptied to be richly filled—then, the Lord begins to manifest his favor, grace, and love; and thus he covers the creature with shame, while he crowns himself with glory!

Prayer, and its Answer

Preached on Thursday Evening, June 10th, 1841, at Zoar Chapel, London, by J. C. Philpot

"He shall call upon Me, and I will answer him." Psalm 91:15

In the words of the text, we find a promise given in them, or rather a declaration which is sealed with a promise—"He shall call upon Me, and I will answer him."

I. The DECLARATION– "He shall call upon me." But who is "he?" Unless we can settle who "he" is, we shall be all perplexed; we shall not be able to understand what the declaration is, or to whom the promise is made. And therefore, before we can get into the text, we must endeavor to ascertain who the person is to whom the declaration is made, and in whose heart the promise is sealed.

This "he" must be the same person who is spoken of throughout the whole psalm; and therefore the first verse will afford us a clue to the point. Generally speaking, through the Psalms and other parts of Scripture, there are clues, there are keys; and if we can only get the key in our hand, it will fit the lock—it will open up the psalm. And therefore my chief desire in reading a psalm for my own instruction and comfort, or in preaching from it, is to find out the key. If I can discover the clue, it seems to introduce me into the chambers; if I can get hold of the key, it seems to open the recesses, and lay bare the treasures of heavenly truth contained in them.

Then "he" that shall call upon the Lord is the same person that is spoken of in the first verse of this psalm. And this is said of him—"He who dwells in the secret place of the Most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty." Then every promise that is made in this psalm, and every declaration that is given in this psalm to a certain person, applies to that certain person spoken of in the first verse—the character described by these words, "He who dwells in the secret place of the Most High." Then no man has any right to a single part of this psalm, no man has any interest in a single promise given in this psalm, no man has any divine acquaintance with the blessed mysteries couched in this psalm, whose name is not written in the first verse—whose experience is not such as the Holy Spirit has there traced out.

cont

And who is this man, and what is his experience? It is "he who dwells in the secret place of the Most High." What is "the secret place of the Most High?" It is the same spot of which Asaph speaks in the seventy-third psalm—"Until I went into the sanctuary of God; then I understood their latter end." It is the spot of which the Lord speaks in Ezekiel—"I will be to them as a little sanctuary in all the countries where they shall come." Then this "secret place" is the secret bosom of God. It is an entrance by faith into Jehovah, who by a spiritual manifestation of Himself leads the soul into a spiritual acquaintance with Him. "The secret place of the Most High" is that solemn spot where Jehovah meets with the sinner in Christ, and where He opens up to him the riches of His mercy, and leads him into His bosom so as to read the secrets of His loving heart. It is called a "secret place," as corresponding with those words, "The secret of the Lord is with those who fear Him, and He will show them His covenant." It is called a "secret place," as only known to the people to whom it is specially communicated. It is called a "secret place," because none can get into it—no, nor desire to get into it—except the Lord Himself, with His own mysterious hand, opens up to them a way into it, sets them down in it, and sweetly blesses them in it.

Then to be in "the secret place of the Most High" is to be brought into something like fellowship and acquaintance with God—something like communion, spiritual worship, divine communion; so as to know something of Him experimentally, and "run into" Him as "a strong tower," and there feel solemn safety. The "secret place of the Most High," then, is not to be got at by nature and by reason; flesh never entered there. "Flesh and blood" cannot enter the kingdom of God above; and flesh and blood cannot enter the kingdom of God below. "I thank You, O Father, Lord of heaven and earth," said Jesus, "that You have hid these things from the wise and prudent, and have revealed them unto babes." Therefore, they are "hid from the wise and prudent." It is that "path which no fowl knows, and which the vulture's eye has not seen." It is a secret hidden from all except those to whom God Himself is pleased by His Spirit specially to reveal it. And when He reveals it, He draws the soul by the powerful attractions of love, "with the cords of love, and the bands of a man," by mysterious attractions into that "secret place;" and then He begins to discover a little of those secrets which are stored up in the Son of God—a few of those secrets which are with those who fear God—a few of those secrets the communication of which makes a man spiritually and eternally wise.

"He who dwells in the secret place of the Most High," is one who more or less, as the Spirit leads him into it, abides there. "Abide in Me, and I in you; if a man abides not in Me, he is cast forth as a branch and is withered." When a man once gets, therefore, by faith into "the secret place of the Most High," he "abides" in it; not as a matter of constant experience, not that he can always feel sweet communion with God; but still it is his home. We all have our home, our fireside, the place where at night we lay our weary bodies down to rest; and it is our dwelling-place. We are not always there; some of us leave our homes in the morning to go about our business, and come back to our homes at night; but our affections are there, our heart is there, our family is there, and we look for evening-time to go home and rest there. It is our dwelling-house, and yet we are not always in it. So with this "secret place of the Most High; "it is the dwelling-place of the Christian—it is the house, the home where his affections are, where his treasure is, and to which his heart turns—but still he is not always there. He goes in and out, he goes abroad, and often leaves this sweet home. Yet it is his dwelling-place; because it is there, and there alone, he can solidly rest; it is there, and there alone, he can lie down, and feed and take pleasure.

cont

Here is a soul, then, that is brought by faith, under the Spirit's operation, to know "the secret place of the Most High," that is, to have some spiritual acquaintance with God in Christ, to enter by faith into the secrets which Jehovah reveals, and to feel that the manifestation of those secrets to his soul makes his heaven here below, and constitutes the real rest and satisfaction of his heart. And to this character all the promises in the Psalms are made; he is savingly interested in every covenant promise that is there uttered by the mouth of God Himself; and every one of those covenant promises shall be fulfilled in him, and shall be fulfilled for him.

1. But the Lord has attached (I will not call it a condition, as it is a word I abhor)—the Lord has attached a declaration, which declaration is linked on with a promise. The Lord has appointed a certain path, wherein the soul is to walk. The walking in that path is a necessary step to obtain the blessing that lies at the end of the path. It is no condition to be performed by the creature; it is nothing that springs out of, or depends upon, human will or human merit; but it hangs upon the Lord's appointment. God has connected certain promises with certain appointments; he has connected certain deliverances with certain trials; he has connected certain blessings with certain states and positions of soul. Therefore, if we are to get at the blessing, we must get at it through God's appointment. If we are to reach the home, we must travel by that road which leads to it. Therefore, "what God has joined together, let no man"—and no man ever can—"put asunder."

Now the Lord has, in the text, declared a certain path; He has made a positive declaration; and to this positive appointment He has graciously annexed a certain promise—"He shall call upon Me, and I will answer him." Then the declaration is as certain as the promise; the one is as much of divine decree as the other; and he who walks not in the path will not have the promise which is connected with that path. In this sense, and in this sense only, can we understand the conditions of Scripture—the ifs, God having linked things together, which are both of His sovereign decree, which are both of His eternal appointment, and which the Spirit graciously brings His people into, and blessedly works in their hearts and consciences. Thus, it is no matter of free-will, it is no matter of man's righteousness or man's wisdom, whether we shall "call upon God." It is appointed he should call upon Him. God has said in positive terms (and His "I will" and His "he shall" never can be broken)—"he shall call upon Me." It therefore does not rest with the creature whether he will call upon Him or not; it is not a matter poised in the balances of the creature, whether he shall pray or not. God has not left it to man, whether he shall take up prayer or lay aside prayer, but He has made it a part of His own sovereign appointments, of His own eternal decrees, which can no more be frustrated than salvation itself. Therefore, this soul that "dwells in the secret place of the Most High"—"he shall call upon God." It is not left to him, whether he will call or not; but it stands in the way of eternal decree, in a way of sovereign good pleasure. And, therefore, he must call upon God, because God has said that He shall.

But though this stands in the way of eternal decree, though this rests upon the basis of divine sovereignty, God does not work it in the soul in that manner. He does not come in a dry doctrinal way into a man's conscience, and say—"I have appointed you to pray, and therefore pray you must." He does not come with an abstract truth, which is written in a man's judgment, like a rule of arithmetic, for the man to set to work upon the abstract truth as a child at school sets to work upon his mathematics. The Lord does not work in that manner; but He works by raising up certain feelings, by communicating certain desires, by kindling certain wants, by bringing the soul into certain states, and by pouring out the Spirit of grace and of supplication upon it—all of which tend to that point, to which He is leading the soul, and all which spring out of God's sovereign and eternal appointment.

cont

"He shall call upon Me." When shall he call? Why, when the Lord pours out "the Spirit of grace and of supplication," when the Lord lays desires upon his heart, when the Lord brings conviction into his conscience, when the Lord brings trouble into his soul, when the Lord draws forth that "Spirit of grace and of supplication" which He has poured out, when the Lord is graciously pleased to draw forth faith into blessed exercise, and to enable the soul to pour out its desires, and to offer up its fervent breathings at His feet, and to give them out as He gives them in. Then to call upon the Lord is no point of duty which is to be attended to as a duty; it is no point of legal constraint, which must be done because the Word of God speaks of it; but it is a feeling, an experience, an inward work, which springs from the Lord's hand, and which flows in the Lord's own divine channel.

Thus when the Lord is pleased to pour out this "Spirit of grace and supplication," we must pray; but we do not pray because we must; we pray because we have no better occupation, we have no more earnest desire, we have no more powerful feeling, and we have no more invincible and irresistible constraint. The child of God in trouble must groan and sigh; he does not say, "Eight o'clock has come, twelve o'clock has come, six o'clock has come, now I will groan, now I will sigh a little, I will take out my Bible, and begin to groan, and to sigh;" that is nothing but the groan of the hypocrite, it is nothing but the sigh of the self-deceiving professor. The living child of God groans and sighs because it is the expression of his desires, because it is a language which pours forth the feelings of his heart, because groans and sighs are pressed out of him by the heavy weight upon him.

A man lying in the street with a heavy weight upon him will call for help; he does not say, "It is my duty to cry to the passers-by for help," he cries for help because he needs to be delivered. A man with a broken leg does not say, "It is my duty to send for a surgeon;" he needs him to set the limb. And a man in a raging disease does not say, "It is my duty to send for a physician;" he needs him, to heal his disease. So, when God the Holy Spirit works in a child of God, he prays, not out of a sense of duty, but out of a burdened heart. He prays, because he cannot but pray; he groans, because he must groan; he sighs, because he must sigh; having an inward weight, an inward burden, an inward experience, in which, and out of which, he is compelled to call upon the Lord.

And I never think anything of a man's religion which did not begin in this way. If a man's religion (so-called) began in any other way than by the Lord's bringing him to know himself as a sinner before Him, and except those convictions of sin were accompanied by "the Spirit of grace and supplication," whereby he was enabled to pour out his soul into the bosom of God, and to sigh, and cry, and groan, "being burdened," I never can believe that man's religion began by God's internal teaching. I know mine began so; and I have always stood firm upon this foundation, that a religion that does not begin with the sighs, and groans, and pourings out of the soul to God under the pourings in of the Spirit, is a religion that began in the flesh, and never sprang from the mighty operation of God in the soul.

"He shall call upon Me." What shall he call upon God for? "He shall call upon Me" for everything that he wants internally to feel. A child of God can call for nothing else. He cannot direct his prayers according to the rule of another's—he does not pick up a few pretty expressions from a gifted man in the pulpit, and go with these prayers to God. He knows that he has to do with One who searches him through, that he stands before a God that will not be mocked and trifled with; and when he comes before the Lord, he asks Him, with sighs, and cries, and groans, for those blessings, and those blessings only, which his conscience tells him he needs, and which his soul is hungering and thirsting to enjoy, delivered into his heart from the mouth of God Himself. He calls upon God for the pardon of his sins, he calls upon God for the revelation of Himself, he calls upon God for the manifestation of Christ, he calls upon God for the application of atoning blood, he calls upon God for the revelation of His eternal favor to his soul, he calls upon God sweetly to bring him into an experimental knowledge of the Lord of life and glory, he calls upon God for every blessing that is set before his eyes, and for every blessing that is laid upon his heart, after which he longs and groans and sighs and pants heartily with unutterable pantings and groanings.

cont.

II. The PROMISE. Now the Lord says, "I will answer." "He shall call upon me, and I will answer him." I will answer just as much as he shall call; and he shall call just as much as I will answer." They are both linked together, and both stand on the same basis of sovereign appointment and eternal decree.

"I will answer him." What will He answer? Why, He will answer those prayers which He Himself has authored. He will answer those wants which He Himself has created. He will answer those hungerings which He Himself has produced. He will answer those thirstings which He Himself has, by His own blessed Spirit, wrought powerfully in the soul.

He does not say when; He does not say how. He does not say it shall be the next hour, next week, next month, next year. He leaves that with Himself, He keeps that in His own hands. He binds Himself by a naked promise; but He does not tell us how He will bring about that promise. That He keeps in His own bosom. And it is a mercy that He does, because, by keeping it in His own bosom, He leaves to Himself a wonderful way in which to work out the accomplishment of that promise. Keeping the manner and the time in His own breast, He reserves to Himself different paths, in which He leads His children, merely tying Himself down with a naked promise, and not revealing in what way the promise shall be accomplished.

It was so with Abraham; He gave him a naked promise, but the way in which it was to be accomplished He kept in His own breast. And so He has given a naked promise to every child of His that "calls upon Him." He says, "He shall call upon Me, and I will answer him;" He has tied Himself there, He has bound Himself by His word, which can never be broken, but He has not said how, nor has He said when.

Now it is this how and when that so try the child of God, who is calling upon the Lord, and not receiving the answer that he desires to receive at His mouth. If he could only but know the time fixed, he could bear with all his trouble patiently; if he could only see the manner in which the blessing would come, he thinks he would find some relief from his trial of soul in calling upon God and finding the answer so long delayed. But the answer that God gives, He gives in His own time. And I believe many of the children of God have had to cry to Him for days, and weeks, and months, and years, and the answer has been delayed; and then, when expectation seemed to languish and die, when there seemed no longer any prospect that God would fulfill His promise, when the hopes of nature (as in the case of Abraham) were become dead, then the Lord fulfilled His promise, and brought His answer into the soul.

cont

But sometimes the Lord is pleased to answer our prayers more immediately; He brings us into those straits and troubles from which we cannot extricate ourselves, and then will answer our prayer, and fulfill the promise. But perhaps it is in such a way as we least expect, and yet in such a way as most glorifies Him.

Now there is sometimes in men's minds a kind of confusion in this matter. They are in a certain path, from which they want to be extricated; they are under a trial, from which they want to be delivered; they call upon the Lord to deliver them, and they ask for some manifestation of Himself, some going forth of His hand, some application of His promise, some divine leading which they are to follow. But the Lord may be working in a very different way from what they think; and they may really be inattentive to the internal voice of God in their consciences, because they are expecting the voice to come in some other way.

It was just so with myself. When I was in the Establishment, burdened with all the things I had to go through, and troubled and distressed in my mind, I was calling upon the Lord to deliver me, to lead me out, to show me what to do, to make the path plain and clear. Now that was my sincere cry; but I expected some miraculous interposition, to hear some voice, to have some wonderful leading; and in waiting for that I was waiting for what the Lord never meant to bestow. And I was brought at last to this internal conviction—suppose I were guilty of drunkenness, suppose I were living in adultery, suppose I were walking in known sin, would I need a voice from God to say to me, "Leave this drunkenness, come out from this adultery, give up this sin?" would I need some divine manifestation to bring me out of a sin, when my conscience bore its solemn witness against it, and I was condemned under the weight and burden of it? No! the very conviction is the answer of God to the prayer; the very burden which the Lord lays on us is meant to press us out of that in which we are walking.

So I reasoned with myself—"If I am living in sin, if it be a sin to be where I am, if by remaining in the Establishment, I must do things which my conscience tells me are sins, and by which my conscience is burdened as sins, the very conviction, the very distress, the very burden, is the answer. It is the voice of God in the conscience, not the voice of God in the air, not the appearance of God in the sky, but the voice of God in the conscience, and the appearance of God in the heart." And on this simple conviction I was enabled to act, and never to this day have I repented it. I have, therefore, been led to see by experience that we are often expecting striking answers, remarkable answers, mysterious answers, and that the Lord does not mean to give those answers.

cont

The Lord, you see, reserves the way in which He shall give the answer. Are you giving way to some temptation, or under the power of some lust? "Oh!" say you, "I want the Lord to lead me out." Well, is the Lord bearing a solemn witness in your conscience? Is the Lord speaking in that secret court, and manifesting His frown in your soul? That is His answer, and He will not give you any other. It is to that the soul must look, and he who is enabled to hear this reproof in conscience must take it as the answer of God to those prayers which he is putting up for deliverance from the temptation or the sin under which he is laboring.

So, again, the soul sometimes shall call upon the Lord to show it sweet manifestations of Christ, to lead it blessedly into Christ, to settle it down into the liberty of Christ, to make Christ precious, and lead the soul into blessed communion with Him. Well, these sighs, and groans, and cries, and desires, and breathings of the soul come from God; they are His work in the conscience. Now the Lord says—"He shall call upon Me, and I will answer him." But how will He answer him? Why, perhaps by making his shackles heavier, making his fetters more grievous. As it was with the children of Israel in Egypt; they cried to the Lord for deliverance, they groaned and sighed, and their prayers reached the ear of the Lord, and their cries moved His heart; but how did He answer? Their burdens were made heavier; they were to make bricks without straw; they were to be put further from deliverance; and every successive plague only seemed to make the king's heart harder, and deliverance more improbable.

So perhaps with ourselves. We have been crying to the Lord for years to make Christ precious, to lead us into close communion with Him, to open up the secrets of His bosom, and bathe our souls in that love of His which "passes knowledge;" and we have found some access to a throne of grace in pouring out those desires. Now, the Lord answers them; but how does He answer them? By bringing us into those spots and those states of experience to which these views of Christ are alone applicable.

Our desire would be to loll upon our sofa or to rest in our armchair, and have Christ come into our hearts without any burdens, or distresses, or griefs, or trials, or temptations, or powerful exercises; we want some sweet manifestation of Christ, but we want it to come through a channel which is not a channel of pain and suffering. Now the Lord says, "He shall call upon Me, and I will answer him"—he shall see Christ, he shall have a sweet view of Christ, he shall have a blessed manifestation of Christ, he shall be led up into Christ—but how? By being placed by God's hand in those spots in which Christ alone is precious, to which Christ alone is adapted, for which Christ alone is suitable, and from which Christ alone delivers. "He shall call upon Me, and I will answer him."

cont

Sometimes the soul will pray to have power, inward power, to lay hold of God's promises, and to feel the sweetness of these promises within. We read the Scriptures; we see such and such promises made to the elect. "Oh!" we say to ourselves, "what do I know of this promise? Surely I have not felt this promise; surely I have not tasted the sweetness of that promise; oh! that the Lord would teach me the sweetness of this promise! Oh! that the Lord would impart to me the enjoyment of that sweet promise!" And the Lord says, "I will; he shall call upon Me, and I will answer him; you shall have the promise, yes, all the promise; you shall have the sweetness of it, the blessedness of it." But mark! you must be in the path to which that promise is suitable; you must be in the trial to which that promise is adapted; you must be in the exercise out of which that promise delivers; you must be in the difficulty which that promise fits. You must have the mortise for the tenon to go into; you must have the emptiness to be filled out of Christ's fullness; you must have the beggary to be supplied with Christ's riches; you must have the bankruptcy to have a sweet and full discharge.

And the Lord, when He is going to fulfill the promise, does not show His hand and say, "Now I am leading you into the promise, now I am fulfilling to you the answer to your prayer; see how My arm is now bare, and how I am guiding and leading you into the promise after which you have been praying." The Lord does not speak thus in conscience, but hides Himself, and darkens the cloud in our souls; we get farther off from the promise than ever—get as it were miles and leagues away from the point we are trying to approach; like the mariner who is driven away by the winds, we are seeking to get into the promise and are blown aside by gusts and winds further from the point at which we are aiming. But the Lord is all the while leading us into it, because He is bringing us down into the spot to which the promise applies.

We say, "Lord, make me rich." He says, "I will—but you must first be made poor." We say, "Lord, let me have a precious view of Christ." "I will—but you must first have a wretched view of self." "Let me know the riches of Christ's blood." "I will—but you must first know the depth of your guilt." "Let me know what it is to stand complete in Christ's righteousness." "I will—but you must first sink down in self-loathing and self-abhorrence."

So that the Lord takes His own path, and chooses His own way, to bring about His own purposes in such a mysterious manner that reason is staggered, nature gives up the spirit, and all the powers of flesh and blood fail, and get to their wits' end; and the Lord brings about the fulfillment of that promise which we have been desiring to get into, and the enjoyment of which we have been longing richly to feel.

So then, "He shall call upon Me, and I will answer Him." The Lord encourages His people to call upon Him for whatever they desire. Not to go with lip-service; not to go with made-up tales; but the Lord encourages all His blood-bought family whom He has quickened by His Spirit to call upon Him for everything their souls long after—be it deliverance from trouble, be it sweet manifestations of mercy, be it a blessed enjoyment of Christ, be it for a heart enlarged, be it for the liberty of the gospel, be it to stand firm in Jesus, be it to be brought out of any temptation under which they are laboring. "Open your mouth wide," says the Lord, "and I will fill it." "Whatever you ask, believing, you shall receive." The Lord encourages His people to open their mouth and tell Him what they have need of. "Pour out your heart before Me," says the Lord.

Well, the soul is sometimes enabled to do so. Have not you and I, friends, been enabled to pour out our hearts at the throne of grace, and tell the Lord what we really wanted, what we really longed for, and tell Him that nothing but that which He alone could give would satisfy and comfort our souls? There have been such times of access to the throne of grace. And afterwards, perhaps, we have forgotten the things we told Him of; we have been heedless of the prayers we laid at His feet; and though very earnest at the time in seeking after certain blessings, we left them, as it were, at the Lord's feet, and forgot them all.

But the Lord does not forget them—they are treasured up in His heart and memory; and in His own time He brings them to light, and gives the fulfillment of them. But before He does it He will bring us into the spot where we desire them again, and then we have to tell Him again, and supplicate Him again, and ask Him again, ashamed of ourselves, perhaps, that we should have asked the Lord for these blessings and been as heedless of them as though we did not care to receive them at His hand; but still, under pressure, under trouble, under soul necessity, under grief—we go and tell Him again. And then the Lord in His own way and time brings about the very thing we desired of Him.

Perhaps it is some temptation under which we have been laboring for months; some grievous sin, which is continually put by Satan before our eyes, and into which we are afraid we shall tumble headlong; some cursed trap, which that arch-deceiver knows how to dress up in such pleasing colors that our wretched nature wants to grasp it—only it knows there is a hook concealed—or some internal weight of guilt, under which the soul "groans, being burdened." Here is a painful exercise; and the soul cries to the Lord to be delivered from it. "He shall call upon Me, and I will answer Him." There is no use going with it to a man; there is no use keeping it buried in our breasts.

Sometimes we get a sullen fit, and we no longer tell the Lord what we feel—He has delayed the answer so long—and we are like a sullen child that will not ask his parent for the very bread that he wants to eat. But we must be brought out of this sulky fit. Whatever the Lord means to give, He from time to time enlarges our heart to ask—and keeps us waiting, pleading, sighing, suing, groaning, and begging at His blessed feet, for those things without which we must perish eternally, without which we cannot comfortably live, and without which we cannot happily die.

And so it is no matter of choice, it is no matter left to the free-will of man, whether he will pray or not; but it is so laid upon his heart, so brought into his soul, it is so pressed out of him by the heavy loads put upon him, that he is compelled, whether he will or not, to cry to the Lord for those things. He must have them or die. And then, from time to time, in His own time and in His own way, He brings everything to pass which the soul wants to have brought to pass; opens up ways, brings deliverances, lifts out of trials, removes burdens, makes a way in the deep, which no eye but His could see, and no hand but His could open, leads the soul into it, brings the soul through it, and then hides all glory from the creature by making us fall down before His feet and ascribe glory, and honor, and power, and thanksgiving, and salvation unto God and the Lamb!